FlightRecord

Cleveland (CLE) to St. Louis (STL): On-Time Performance

Data through May 2026

The calendar drives reliability on CLE–STL. September 2024 flights landed on schedule 96% of the time, but December 2024 dropped to 69% — a gap of 27 points. Across the full period the route averages 85% on-time against a national 78%. Morning departures also hold up better than evening ones (92% vs 77%), which matters most in the rough months.

On-time
85%
arrived <15 min late
Avg delay
9 min
completed flights
Cancelled
0.8%
Flights/day
1.9
last 12 months
Duration
1h 39m
scheduled
Distance
487 mi

Monthly on-time trend

Monthly on-time percentage for CLE to STL flights50%75%100%June 2024: 81% on-time (59 flights)81Jun 2024July 2024: 83% on-time (60 flights)83August 2024: 87% on-time (70 flights)87September 2024: 96% on-time (69 flights)96Sep 2024October 2024: 93% on-time (58 flights)93November 2024: 94% on-time (54 flights)94December 2024: 69% on-time (58 flights)69Dec 2024January 2025: 85% on-time (58 flights)85February 2025: 84% on-time (52 flights)84March 2025: 87% on-time (53 flights)87Mar 2025April 2025: 91% on-time (55 flights)91May 2025: 80% on-time (56 flights)80June 2025: 92% on-time (60 flights)92Jun 2025July 2025: 80% on-time (61 flights)80August 2025: 87% on-time (68 flights)87September 2025: 87% on-time (69 flights)87Sep 2025October 2025: 95% on-time (58 flights)95November 2025: 85% on-time (54 flights)85December 2025: 77% on-time (57 flights)77Dec 2025January 2026: 88% on-time (56 flights)88February 2026: 87% on-time (52 flights)87March 2026: 76% on-time (58 flights)76Mar 2026April 2026: 88% on-time (56 flights)88May 2026: 75% on-time (56 flights)75

Best time to fly from CLE to STL

Aim for departures around 6 a.m. (94% on-time); avoid 9 p.m. departures (62%).

On-time percentage by scheduled departure hour, CLE to STL6 a.m.: 94% on-time (67 flights)67 a.m.: 89% on-time (101 flights)78 a.m.: 94% on-time (314 flights)89 a.m.: 91% on-time (101 flights)910 a.m.: 94% on-time (32 flights)1011 a.m.: 79% on-time (29 flights)1112 p.m.: 91% on-time (91 flights)121 p.m.: 93% on-time (40 flights)132 p.m.: 87% on-time (31 flights)143 p.m.: 78% on-time (28 flights)155 p.m.: 93% on-time (76 flights)176 p.m.: 76% on-time (110 flights)187 p.m.: 83% on-time (142 flights)198 p.m.: 72% on-time (151 flights)209 p.m.: 62% on-time (80 flights)21scheduled departure hour

By day of week

DayOn-timeAvg delay
Monday85%9 min
Tuesdaybest91%5 min
Wednesday89%7 min
Thursday85%11 min
Friday85%11 min
Saturday84%8 min
Sunday78%10 min

What causes delays on this route

Share of total delay minutes by cause, as reported by carriers to the US DOT.

  • Late-arriving aircraft51%
  • Airline operations35%
  • National airspace system10%
  • Weather3%
  • Security1%

Frequently asked questions

How often are flights from CLE to STL delayed?
15% of CLE–STL flights arrived 15 or more minutes late (the US DOT definition of a delay) between 2024-06 and 2026-05. The average arrival delay across completed flights was 9 minutes.
What is the best time of day to fly from CLE to STL?
Departures around 6 a.m. have the best record (94% on-time), while departures around 9 p.m. have the worst (62%). As on most US routes, delays accumulate through the day, so earlier flights are generally safer.
How long is the flight from CLE to STL?
The scheduled CLE–STL flight time averages 1h 39m over 487 miles. Actual arrival times vary — flights on this route land 15+ minutes late 15% of the time.
How often are CLE to STL flights cancelled?
0.8% of scheduled flights on this route were cancelled between 2024-06 and 2026-05, at or below the national rate of 1.6%.
What is the worst month to fly from CLE to STL?
December 2024 was the roughest month in this dataset, with only 69% of arrivals on time. The best was September 2024 at 96%. If your dates are flexible, that 27-point gap is worth planning around.

Based on 1,407 flights, 2024-062026-05. Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Updated 2026-07-01.